First new purchase of the year - Neo, Ikaruga 斑鳩

[Hakumin]

Originally Posted by bjmac

Does the red tip stay red as the root continues to grow?

On this one yes, it should.

Originally Posted by u bada

you giving it any different amount of light than the others?

Nope, medium light as with the majority of my neos.

Originally Posted by u bada

side note, my shut, usual variety, has bright green root tips for some reason, just got it last fall so not sure what's going on. I read some where it does better with low to medium light, but if I'm missing the rubier root tips then I'll have to move it... on other hand, if in lower lights the root tips should be just muddy than really don't know for sure what's going on...

Standard Shutenno should have very dark, brownish burgundy roots. Between seed variation, and cultural conditions, this can be somewhat darker or lighter. I don't think I've ever heard of a verified Shutenno with solid green root tips with no red/brown at all. Has your plant flowered for you yet?

Also, what color is the very base of the stem? Shutenno also has the distinctive characteristic of having very dark pigmented stem bases, almost black, similar to what you see on my Ikaruga.

In terms of level of light, what I've heard is that Shutenno should be grown in medium to medium-high light to get the best color and characteristics.